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Line up: Terence Blanchard - trumpet, Kendrick Scott - drums, Fabian Almazan - piano, Brice Winston - tenor sax, Joshua Crumbly - bass.“[The musicians] are able to take these compositions and immediately translate them into the particular sound of Terence’s band, which in many ways reminds me of what used to happen with Miles.”-Herbie Hancock

The crucible of catastrophe impels creative expression. Since the turn of the century, this has taken shape in manifold ways, from artistic responses to the 9/11 terrorist attacks to the war in Iraq to the pummeling of New Orleans in the wake of Hurricane Katrina in 2005. It is this latter calamity that informs Crescent City native son Terence Blanchard’s impassioned song cycle, A Tale of God’s Will (A Requiem for Katrina), a 13-track emotional tour de force of anger, rage, compassion, melancholy and beauty. A Tale of God’s Will, which features Blanchard’s quintet—pianist Aaron Parks, saxophonist Brice Winston, bassist Derrick Hodge, drummer Kendrick Scott—as well as a 40-member string orchestra, is his third album for Blue Note Records. (Since signing with the label in 2003, Blanchard has released two other critically acclaimed albums, Bounce and Flow, the latter of which was nominated for two Grammys in 2006.)

“This is what we are called to do as artists,” says the trumpeter, bandleader, arranger and film-scorecomposer.“Wedocumentoursocialsurroundingsand give our impressions of events. The problem with Katrina is that the devastation is so vast that there’s only been a trickle of art so far. We’re all still digesting what went on and what continues to happen. It’s like an unending story. For me, like so many others, it’s taken me a moment to get my mind around all of this. I knew I needed to express this musically to keep the story alive, but so many important things—the safety of family members, figuringouthowtorebuildmymother’shouse—neverallowedme the time to breathe for a minute.”

An important jumpstart for A Tale of God’s Will was director Spike Lee’s decision to document the aftermath of Katrina on film,inwhatturnedoutto be the four-hour HBO documentary, When The Levees Broke, which aired last year. Lee, who has enlisted Blanchard on numerous occasions to score his films,such as Mo’BetterBlues, MalcolmX, The25thHourandInside Man, tapped him once again for his documentary. “That started me to make some musical statements for this moment in time,” Blanchard says. “It’s part of the grieving process. Once I wrote some of the music for Spike’s film,I knew Icould take it and expanduponit. Meanwhile, guysin my band were writing music that reflected on what happened in the aftermath of Katrina. This provided me with the perfect opportunity to bring the band all together.”

Supporting Artist/Band

Support: The Ronnie Scotts All Stars

The Ronnie Scott's All Stars are comprised of some of the greatest talents on the U.K scene, including some of our most regular performers James Pearson (piano), Sam Burgess (bass) and Pedro Segundo (drums)

James Pearson:-

Musical Director at Ronnie Scott’s and the owner of a ferocious piano technique coupled with a sense of musicality rarely heard, James Pearson is one of the most exciting musicians to have emerged from the U.K in the last 25 years. After working with him, the late jazz legend Sir John Dankworth declared: "James Pearson is an exceptionally gifted artist. His masterful playing makes him head and shoulders above the rest of his contemporaries. He shows signs of true greatness".

At 22 years old Pedro Segundo, Portuguese drummer joins the James Pearson Trio at Ronnie Scott’s Jazz Club.

Born and raised in Lisbon, picked up the drums seriously at the age of eight starting studying classical percussion a year later. In June 2011 he graduates from Guildhall School of Music and Drama in Timpani and Classical Percussion. His musical ability combines a blend of styles creating a unique sound on the drum set. He has played regularly with Dennis Rollins, Femi Temowo, Mário Franco, Cleveland Watkiss and many other artists touring in festivals all around the globe.

Award-winning rising stars, Tomorrow’s Warriors Biggish Band make their live debut at Ronnie Scotts jazz club under the watchful eye of their tutor/mentor, Gary Crosby OBE. These fantastic young jazz musicians come to the club to celebrate their success in the 2010 Yamaha Jazz Experience Band Competition earlier this year, when they fended off bands from Guildhall School of Music and Drama, London and Chetham's School of Music, Manchester at Cheltenham Jazz Festival. Hip, hot, yet totally cool, Tomorrow’s Warriors Biggish Band notch up yet another success for this influential outfit, extending the extraordinary legacy of the artist development programme established by Crosby almost 20 years ago. Fitting, indeed, that they should open for the legendary Jon Hendricks, regarded as one of the most influential and innovative vocalists ever.

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Tell us what you think of Terence Blanchard, Support: The Ronnie Scotts All Stars , Support (Thurs only): Tomorrow’s Warriors Biggish Band below..